Improvement in the means of attaching the soles to boots and shoes



UNITED STATES FIIIGE,

PATENT IMPROVEMENT IN THE MEANS 0F ATTACHING THE SOLES T0 BOQTS ANDSHOES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 106,0l0, dated August2, 1870.

fdiameters, with the larger' diameters or prominent portions rounded.

The second feature of my invention relates to a form of nail or wirewith a head on one end; and consists ina piece of wire, round, oval,triangular, quadrangulalgor any form in its cross-section, butlongitudinally having a succession of larger and smaller diameters, withthe larger diameters or prominent portions rounded, and having a head onone end.

Referring to` my drawing, Figure l shows two longitudinal sections of mystaple-wire.

Fig. 2 shows a longitudinal section. representing a series of parallelwires connected to each other at one end. Fig. 3 shows the various formsin cross-section. Fig. 4 shows a new form of nail or wire, with a headon one end of it. Fig. 5 shows a piece of the round wire,

also a section with the indentations angular,

while the prominent portions are rounded. Fig. 6 represents longitudinalsections of my wire at right angles to that shown in Fig. 2.

a b a on the dotted line A, Fig. l, is a longitudinal section of mystaple-wire, taken in the dotted line B, showing its whole length; and aon the dotted line B is a longitudinal section through one end of mystaple-wire, taken in the dotted line A.

a, a a, Fig. 2, show the series of wires connected at one end by themetallic strip b b', and are longitudinal sections in the dotted line Oor O', and may be pressed out of a sheet of metal having indentations onits sides, as shown in the crosssection of the sheet represented by a,Fig. 6; or the sides of the sheet may be plain, as represented in thecrosssection at a', Fig. 6, which are longitudinal sections of the wire4or fastening for the Soles of shoes or boots, after having been pressedfrom the sheet, taken in the dotted line D, Fig. 2. 1

a l 2 3 4 5 6, Fig. 3, show six of the crosssectional forms in which mywire may be made, though I do not limit myself to these, as thecross-sectional form may bevaried indefinitely, while, longitudinally,it has a succession of larger and smaller diameters, t-he largerdiameters being rounded.

ct, Fig. 4, shows my new form of nail or wire, with a head, c, on oneend, which is a longitudinal section of the same. This may besubstituted, in some cases, for the staple-wire, or that shown at Fig.l.

bis the middle part of my staple-wire, which commonly rests upon theinterior surface of the sole, or upon the interior surface of the vampwhen said vamp rests upon the upper surface of the sole, and parallel totheir surfaces at the parts where driven in, while the ends a a passthrough the u'pper and into the sole.

b Z1', Fig. 2, holds a similar position as b, Fig. l, in resting uponthe surface of the leather, while the wires a a a pass through the upperand into the sole. wire a, Fig. 4., occupies a similar position, andthese three parts 12,12', and c perform a similar servicethat is, theysecure the upper in certain cases to the sole more securely than thesimple wire, as shown at a, Fig. 5; and all of these, 1;,11, and c, maybe partially or entirely embedded in the leather which they secure tothe sole.

I make `my wire by takin g the wire of commerce, iron, brass, or anysuitable metal usually round in its crosssection; and if I wish to haveit round when completed, I run it between a pair of rolls havingsemicircular grooves in their perimeters, and in these grooves'havesuccessive indentations of suitable size and form to impress the properform on the wire, as described, when it passes between a pair of theserolls, and if the wire is not vperfectly formed by passing through onepair, it may pass through a second pair at right angles to the first,which will complete it.

The oval wire is formed by having one pair of the rolls nearer to eachother than the other pair.

The triangular wire is formed by having Also, the head c on the,

three rolls Work together, With their Workingsurfaces properly indented;and the quadrangular wire in like manner requires four rolls; and if itis desired to have the sides of the angular Wire convex, theWorking-surfaces of these rolls are made concave.

The indentations in the sides of the Wire may be angular, as shown at u,Fig. 5; but the Wire is better and easier made with the smallerdiameters rounded as well as the larger.

In preparing my staple-Wire for use it is taken from a reel, passedthrough rolls to give it the proper indentations, as shown at a, a, ora", Fig. 5. Y' It is then cut into suitable lengths and bent bymachinery1 in an obvious manner, and it may have any form in itscrosssection suitable for the purpose of fastening the soles on shoesand boots, as those shown in Fig. 3, or any other, provided that it ismade into a staple form.

I make the wires, as shown in Figs. 2 and 6, by first rolling the properndentations into the sheet of metal, and then punching them out in theform shown in Fig. 2, and having a cross-section, as shown at 6, Fig. 8,showing a section in the dotted line at D, as at a., Fig. 6, havingindentations on all sides; but if the indentations are only on tivosides, then the section at D will appear as at a', Fig. 6that is, madeof a plain sheet; but these Wires may be pressed into any form in theircross-section, and in their longitudinal formy their indentations andprominent portions maybe as a, a, or a, Fig. 5.

In the third part my invention-that is, the simple manufacture of Wirenot bent into the staple form, not in connected series, nor having ahead on one end-may have a longitudinal form, as a and a, Fig. 5, and acrosssectional form, as 3, 4, 5, and 6, Fig. 3, or any other which maybe found useful for the purpose described, except round and oval, whichhave been previously patented.

The headed wire a, Fig. 4, may be made of wire of longitudinal form, asa, a, or a, Fig. 5, and as l, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6, Fig. 3, or any otheruseful form in its cross-section. It is then taken from a reel and fedthrough an instrument which cuts it into proper lengths, at the sametime striking a head on each piece.

These different kinds of Wire are suited to different kinds of work, andeach may be said to have its peculiar advantages When used on the workfor which it is specially adapted, and, in accordance with this, thestaple-Wire and the headed Wire are best suited to those turnshoes wherethe Wire passes through the upper and into the edge of the sole, andnearly parallel to its surface.

The Wire shown at Fig. 2 is best suited to those turn-shoes which havethe upper leather placed directly on the upper side of the sole, thewires passing through the upper and into the sole at right angles to itssurface, and, in this case, a series of wires is taken, suficient toextend entirely around the sole near its edge, and are pressed throughthe upper and into the sole at one operation by means of a suitablepress, so that the sole can be permanently attached to the vamp by thismethod, and with this form of Wire, in equal or less time than will bcrequired to last the shoe preparatory for the attachment ofthe sole byany other method in use.

The staple-Wire will answer very Well for the lastnamed shoe.

The simple straight Wire, having the longitudinal form of a or a, Fig.5, and any of the forms i, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6, Fig. 3, :in theircrosssections, is better adapted to attach the soles to the uppers ofthose shoes and boots which are not turned after the sole is attached.

By the term turn shoe or boot,7 I mean those which have their solesattached to the vamps or uppers While wrong side out, after- Ward to beturned and finished.

My drawings are all on a large scale, some iive or six times thediameter required for use in ordinary shoe Work.

Some of the advantages of my manufacture of wires are as follows:

They can be made entirely by machinery, and bring the manufacture ofshoes and boots more in the control of machinery than any system in use.With my wires an operative can do much more Work inthe same time,thereby reducing the cost. My Wires have a greater holding power thanany others in use, on aci i i i i i count of all their prominent partsbeing' rounded, thereby enabling them to pass smoothly into the leatherWithout cutting, tearing, or mangling its fibers, as all Wires do whichhave sharp edges or angular points presented to the leather as they passin, thus giving my Wires, When in their places, the advantage of havingthe unbroken bers of the leather contract close onto the Wires at theirsmaller diameters, in such manner that, when the leather becomes dry andrigid, and thus pressing closely into all the indentations of the wire,as Well as their prominent parts, will give them a greater holding powerthan any wire in use.

My staple-wire and the connected Wires, (shown at Fig. 2,) in additionto the rapidity and cheapness in which the Work can be done by theiruse, make it possible to attach the sole to the upper of a turn-shoe inwhich the upperis placed directly on the upper side ot' the sole,securing it in a firm and durable manner by means of the horizontalportions b and b', binding the upper in its place, making both a cheaperand better .turn-shoe than any hitherto made.

With this description of my invention, I claim- 1. As a new article ofmanufacture, a Wire for attaching the soles of shoes and boots to theirvamps, having a succession of larger and smaller diameters With thelarger portions rounded, substantially as shown at a a. af,

seotion, and having a head, o, on one end, as and for the purpose setforth.

WILLIAM WICKERSHAM.

Witnesses A. D. PARKER, LEWIS BULLARD.

